Ami's Summer Reading List of 2014

As I near graduation and the end of high school, I like to both reflect backward and gaze forward. In looking back, I’ve found several jewels in my bookshelf I think people need to read. I’ll come out with other book lists (because even as I type I come up with more options to add), but this is the must have for summer. Pick as many as you want off this list and enjoy.

Hitler’s Daughter by Jackie French

I loved this book because of how simply it delivered such a deep topic. The book centers around a group of Australian school children telling each other stories as they wait for the school bus each morning. One tells a riveting tale of a crippled little girl who knows Adolf Hitler only as “Papa”. The book covers so many topics: what makes someone evil? How should family members treat each other? And the all-important question every child wonders: “Will my family still love me if I do something wrong?” It’s a deep book, but it’s easily broken into chapters and is short, so it’s a great piece-by-piece read.

Wings by E.D. Baker

This might be my favorite non-traditional fairy tale of all time. Tamisin is a regular teenager with a few quirks until she wakes up with her back on fire. She stays home from school, waking from a painkiller-induced sleep to find two fairy wings on her back. The only person who seems able to give her answers is a mysterious new kid at school – but whenever she hangs out with him, bad things seem to happen. This story is unpredictable, riveting, and, for a fairy tale, surprisingly realistic. Baker depicts high school in a strangely accurate setting. The relationships in the book aren’t forced or unnecessary. I’d recommend Wings to anyone who’s exhausted the usual fairy tale and wants a new twist.

Stargirl by Jerry Spinelli
This book is strange, but in a very good way. Leo is a regular high school junior in a regular life in a regular high school, but everything changes when a former homeschooler enrolls. She carries a rat and a ukulele, doesn’t cut her hair, wears a long prairie dress that trails to the floor, and calls herself “Stargirl”. Stargirl is unaffected by all the social norms Leo is so in tune with. Her fellow students both despise and adore her. Her parents accept her. And Leo begins to fall in love with her. This book is so invigorating that it’s as unusual as Stargirl herself. Spinelli dissects the social structure of high school – all the uniformity, wavering popularity, romance, and regularity that so many teenagers have been forced to accept is shoved under the spotlight. Stargirl is, in her own way, a star.

Asta In the Wings by Jan Elizabeth Watson
Asta is a seven-year-old girl who has never stepped outside her home, due to her mother’s strict rules and overpowering delusions. When her mother one day does not return home from work, Asta and her older brother venture outside into an overwhelming new world and life. Placed in the foster care system, Asta is ripped from her brother and has to experience life through young eyes. My parents bought me this book on one of our summer bookstore adventures while on vacation, and it’s definitely the perfect book for travel. Asta’s adventures are easy reads that are simple to understand yet exciting to experience. 

Bloomability by Sharon Creech
Few authors are as adept at depicting the expatriate lifestyle as Sharon Creech in this book. Dinnie is a thirteen-year-old girl living in a constantly moving, poverty-stricken family – until her aunt and uncle enroll her in a school in Switzerland. The story, characters, point of view, and basically everything are refreshing and a healthy-for-the-soul kind of read. Creech, as usual, has a knack for turning the unusual into the relatable. I love all of Sharon Creech’s books and recommend all of them, but this one is a particular favorite of mine.

Isabel of the Whales by Hester Velmans
I picked this book up at the National Aquarium in Baltimore, Maryland, and I was not disappointed. When young Isabel tumbles off a whale watching boat, not only can she understand what the whales around her are saying, but also she discovers she has been chosen to be a whale-human ambassador. The catch? She must become a whale for a year. Leaving behind family and friends, Isabel becomes a humpback whale and travels with a pod to discover the trials and lives of her favorite marine species. Not only does this highlight the issues of marine life, but it’s an engaging and heartfelt read. I adored every second, despite being much older than the intended age group.

Girl In Translation by Jean Kwok

This is a refreshing look at immigration from the immigrant’s perspective. In the seventies, a young girl named Ah-Kim and her mother move from affluency in Hong Kong to poverty in New York City. Ah-Kim, renamed Kimberly, narrates her tale as she struggles to survive in America with a strong intelligence but a weak knowledge of English. The story is narrated in the style of a memoir, and, since the author shared so many experiences with Kimberly, it is easily mistaken for one.

The Art of Racing In The Rain by Garth Stein

So often books narrated by dogs are too simple and geared for children, but Stein’s beautiful novel goes beyond the stereotype. Enzo is a highly intelligent Buddhist who just happens to be a beloved dog. His owners, a notable race car driver, his cancer-battling wife, and their affectionate young daughter, go through struggle after struggle with Enzo at their side. Enzo’s perspective, wisdom, and imagination make the novel a fresh and glorious bestseller. Except for one rather racy chapter, I couldn’t encourage reading this book enough.

Fast Food Nation by Eric Schlosser

This is the only book on this list that I haven’t finished. I’ve had it since sixth grade (six years, good heavens) and never had the time or mental capacity to sit down and read through the entire thing. Investigative journalist Eric Schlosser hits the proverbial nail on the head with his nonfiction book on the truth behind the fast food system throughout America. Schlosser dissects labor, history, zoning, franchising, advertising, and, yes, what’s in the food itself. The book, though packed wiith facts and investigation, is an engaging read unlike any other. Schlosser’s objective approach to fast food in America allows readers to draw their own conclusions about this all-American meal that doesn’t seem to look out for all Americans.

The Selection by Kiera Cass

This is the only dystopian novel I thoroughly loved. In this Bachelor-meets-Hunger-Games book, seventeen-year-old America lives in a futuristic dystopia dominated by a worldwide monarchy and a crippling caste system. When Crown Prince Maxon finally reaches the age of marriage, every girl of age is required to submit a photo and biography in hopes of being chosen as the future queen of “Illea”. Despite being hopelessly in love with a boy from a lower caste, America is chosen to be one of the top thirty-five contenders. In a world of more frequent unrest and rebellions, she and thirty-four other girls must compete in areas of social etiquette, grace, planning, and seduction in order to achieve favor with the slightly overwhelmed Maxon. To make matters worse, America’s former boyfriend and first love is working at the palace – and she doesn’t even want to be there in the first place! Cass’s novel is filled with excitement, drama, and crazy plot twists that nobody will see coming. I love this book!